Attending law school at the University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill

Frye describes his decision to go to law school at the University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill and he discusses what it was like to be the only African American student in his class. Frye recalls that he was not discriminated against by his teachers or fellow students, although he suggests that had he not been married already, his social life might have been affected by his status as the only African American student.

Citing this Excerpt

Oral History Interview with Henry Ell Frye, February 18 and 26, 1992. Interview C-0091. Southern Oral History Program Collection (#4007) in the Southern Oral History Program Collection, Southern Historical Collection, Wilson Library, University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill.

Full Text of the Excerpt

AMY E. BOENING:

What made you decide to go to UNC for law school?

HENRY ELL FRYE:

Several things. First all, by this time I was very conscious of the fact
that we still had largely separate black and white institutions. In
talking with other lawyers and people I found out first of all that a
substantial number of the judges, legislators, and people who ran the
state were graduates of Carolina Law School. So I said, "Well,
maybe that's where I need to go." That, together
with the fact that I could go there cheaper than I could to one of the
private schools, of course. At that time, no black had started at
Carolina and completed the three year course and graduated. All of the
others had either started and not finished or had transferred from North
Carolina Central which prior to that time had been the school for
blacks - the law school for blacks in North Carolina. So I
said, "Well, I'll try." I applied and was
accepted and went on to law school.

AMY E. BOENING:

What was it like? You were the only black in your law school class,
weren't you?

HENRY ELL FRYE:

Yes, yes. That was not a major problem for me. It would have been
probably if I had been single. But I was married and by this time my
interest really was solely in law and my social life
was back in Greensboro; so I was interested in just going to school and
getting my work and that type of thing. There was no real problem other
than trying to get those tough cases and briefing those and that type of
thing. So I thought that I was treated fairly by the instructors and
things of that nature.